All of the Lenormand books I’ve read have included a write-up on how to pick a deck. Rather than regurgitate what those authors have written, I’ll speak from my experience playing with three different sets since the beginning of July. During that time, I’ve familiarized myself with Lenormand symbolism andhave gotten to the point where I can understand “sentences” of three Lenormand cards added together.
Unless you are an experienced card-reader, I’d suggest ignoring ornate or themed decks when you are first learning Lenomand. Pretty decks will undoubtedly catch your eye. And why not? A great deal of time and effort goes into creating each card. In a way, that’s almost the problem. Lenormand imagery is meant to be simple. You shouldn’t need to interpret an elaborate story to understand a card’s meaning. Keep that in mind before you purchase fancy Lenormand sets, especially if you want to memorize the meanings quickly.
You might want avoid Lenormand decks that feature playing card inserts too.
Lenormand’s fortune-telling system evolved from another type of card-reading called Piquet. Piquet used partial decks of normal playing cards, which explains Lenormand’s inserts. Caitlin Matthews demonstrates how you can weave together the meanings of Lenormand cards and their matching inserts in The Complete Lenormand Oracle Handbook, but this complex style of reading style is far beyond the scope of my beginner’s challenge.
If you live in a smaller area, however, you may have to buy a Lenormand deck on the internet. Lenormand isn’t as popular as Tarot yet, so there aren’t as many options available in occult shops. Quite a few of the nice decks currently available are being produced by smaller companies too, and this can ordering them difficult if you live outside of the United States. I felt lucky when I came across a small selection at my local Pagan store, even if none of the decks were exactly what I’d hoped.
Hopefully, anyone else wanting to give Lenormand a try for the upcoming Domagick challenge can learn from my purchases and find the deck of their dreams.You can even give my cheat-sheat a try to help you get started on the meanings.